Marketing is something that business owners should plan well in advance. If a business owner is starting a new venture, he or she should include marketing concepts, including content marketing, in the business plan. Content marketing is essential to brand development. Additionally, businesses that have been viable for several years should also take advantage of furthering their brands via content marketing
Smaller companies may not have the funds to create an extensive marketing campaign, however, that is the beginning of the road to failure. According to the American Bankruptcy Institute, 60 percent of companies with less than five employees file bankruptcy.
A marketing portfolio/brand development does not have to be expensive. Why pay $4 million for a Super Bowl ad when about 40 percent of those who watch it may decide to purchase your product?
Brand development is the key to successful marketing. This includes earning consumers’ trust about your brand. While important regardless of the product or service you offer, brand development is something smaller companies should pay particular attention to. A larger company might sink millions into advertising without batting an eye. However, smaller companies have a smaller budget to accomplish the same brand development as their larger counterparts.
Using Content Marketing to Develop Your Brand
Going back to the theory that brand development doesn’t have to be expensive – you must create a successful marketing strategy. You can use social media, blogs and web pages to create a successful strategy that allows consumers to trust your brand.
Gaining the trust of the consumer is an important part of brand development; and you can do that by keeping your customers informed. Start a Facebook page, Twitter account, create a blog and place informative articles on your web site. According to Bloomberg Business Week, 1.23 billion people around the world use Facebook. Internet World Stats claims that as of June 30, 2012, there were 2,405,518,376 people on the Internet.
Granted, you’re not going to reach all of them, but as your company builds a solid page on social media, adds blog posts and informative articles, you are sure to reach a good portion of people – at least those that are local to you if you are a brick-and-mortar business. If your business provides goods and services online regardless of location, you’re not limited to targeting those within a certain distance from you.
Tying it All Together
Content marketing doesn’t work unless you create a profile. Create a customer profile by identifying your target audience. Once you have a target audience, you can determine whom to target on social media.
Your social media posts should lead to blog posts and informative articles on your site. In turn, those articles and blog posts encourage the consumer to visit your web page to purchase your product or service.
According to the Huffington Post, close to 90 percent of all online consumers want a brand to share content online. This means “how to” articles and other informative posts. The site also states that 70 percent of consumers would rather get to know a company through content marketing – sponsored articles instead of ads.
Another statistic provided by the Huffington post is that almost 90 percent of people skip television commercials. We can bet that you’re a part of that 90 percent – so why add more money to the $19.8 billion already spent on television ads that most people don’t watch?
At the top of this article, we mentioned that Xmedia reported about 40 percent of Super Bowl ads generated action for a brand. Huffington Post, using the Bleacher Report, reports that only 30 percent of Super Bowl ads generate action for a brand. Furthermore, viewers will remember just 70 percent of the brands advertised during the Super Bowl.
Use social media accounts to target your preferred consumers, and then lead them to informative articles and blog posts. The posts and articles will then generate more interest in your product or service and entice the consumer to review your web page. If you have compelling content throughout the process, including on your web page, you’re sure to get a sale.
